The death of a Necromancer
Let us check back with an old friend, gentle readers - Kand the Wizard, who traveled briefly with Our Heroes in Sandpoint but left to seek his dwarven fortune as a Thassilonian Scholar in the city of Magnimar.
Do you remember Kand the Wizard? I'll give you some time to read back in our Missive. Your Humble Narrator will wait here for your return.
There! Now we are all together in our Journey along with The Heroes, yes?
Kand did some work with Lyrie Akenja.... oh, dear. Yes, We'll wait again.
No - it was AFTER the Glassworks. Lyrie was the researcher in Thistletop. With the cat familiar! Yes that's correct. It's fine to take another pause, yes - being the written word you can just pick back up with this once you're done.
Okay? Okay. Lyrie had a friend Orik - no, wait! He was just a mercenary that fell in with Lyrie. You don't need to... oh, well - yes, I see. Fine.
...
...
...
Okay? Okay! Lyrie and Kand worked together in Magnimar. Then Lyrie and Orik vanished, owing Kand several hundred gold. Kand followed them to Turtleback Ferry, where he found Lyrie's abandoned storefront - no sign of Lyrie or Orik. But he also heard news of his former travelling companions, and so headed to Fort Rannick to say hello.
Now, we are all caught up!
Kand arrived just in time to head up into the Storval Mountains - up 10,000 feet to the Kreeg's iron mine and forge. The cave was guarded by a hill giant and two ogres - and as The Heroes did what they generally do with Monsterous Foes, two more Ogres appeared!
It was a surprisingly difficult fight but, as Our Heroes do, they emerged victorious.
In the entry hall was the skeleton of a Blue Dragon, the bones carved with runes and sigils, including the Sihedron Rune. Kand recognized this as a sort of copy-cat runesmithing; carvings that had the overt form of magical Thasillonian runes, but without the actual magic or power behind them.
A statue of an enormous giant stood across from the skeleton - 40 feet tall, wearing jewel-encrusted armor and a Giant-sized Sihedron Amulet around his neck. Removing the amulet made the frozen Giant corpse collapse, leaving only the amulet, and the breastplate.
Heading into the cave further The Party was whispered at by a coven of three hags, who wished to leave their Master Barl Breakbone's service. They figured that an attack by Our Heroes would be an ideal time to do so, and so fed the party information (he is a Stone Giant Necromancer!) and promised to take the ColdWight formed from the former leader of the Black Arrows and leave.
There was something there about how Lamatar had some sort of love affair with a nymph, and the hags wanted to see how the nymph was doing and provide her some closure, or something - just weird fae business, it sounded like, and we need not concern ourselves with any of that.
The corridors in the Kreeg cave were filled with the noise and smoke from a working forge - peering down one tunnel, Vig and Torvan saw over a score of ogres working the steel (with possibly several more in the mines). Yikes!
Down another corridor lay the Sin Pool room - a Sin Pool which had been recently destroyed. I fear that Auren Vrood, necromancer-at-large for the Whispering Way, had recently gained Mythic Power! Will he be a worthy foe for Our Heroes?
Only for certain small values of 'worthy', I'm afraid - the six Hill Giant zombies posed very little threat, being slow and shambling; Mr. Vrood damaged Our Heroes with a fireball but did very little other damage before dying. Upon his death he convulsed, and a magical acid consumed his heart and then his jaw.
At least it seemed to be a miserable sort of death, for what that's worth. Necromancers - eeeeww.
Barl the Stone Giant, however, was a Necromancer of a more sturdy sort - and was at least clever enough to go after the healer first. He strode towards Kendra and began pummeling her with his Giant Maul....
And not seconds after witnessing the death of the man who killed her father, Kendra Lorrimor died, her skull and chest broken by a Giant.
The Giant Barl did not live much longer than that. Saddened by their loss, the party almost did not have the will or strength to loot first the chamber, and then the entry-way giant's suit of armor.
But, as Our Heroes are wont to do, larceny found a way. All the while the banging and pounding and smoke continued to emerge from the forge.
Back in Fort Rannick, the next day, Sorshen the Runelord met with The Party....
But that is a tale for next time. We close the curtains here, gentle readers, until next time.
Do you remember Kand the Wizard? I'll give you some time to read back in our Missive. Your Humble Narrator will wait here for your return.
There! Now we are all together in our Journey along with The Heroes, yes?
Kand did some work with Lyrie Akenja.... oh, dear. Yes, We'll wait again.
No - it was AFTER the Glassworks. Lyrie was the researcher in Thistletop. With the cat familiar! Yes that's correct. It's fine to take another pause, yes - being the written word you can just pick back up with this once you're done.
Okay? Okay. Lyrie had a friend Orik - no, wait! He was just a mercenary that fell in with Lyrie. You don't need to... oh, well - yes, I see. Fine.
...
...
...
Okay? Okay! Lyrie and Kand worked together in Magnimar. Then Lyrie and Orik vanished, owing Kand several hundred gold. Kand followed them to Turtleback Ferry, where he found Lyrie's abandoned storefront - no sign of Lyrie or Orik. But he also heard news of his former travelling companions, and so headed to Fort Rannick to say hello.
Now, we are all caught up!
Kand arrived just in time to head up into the Storval Mountains - up 10,000 feet to the Kreeg's iron mine and forge. The cave was guarded by a hill giant and two ogres - and as The Heroes did what they generally do with Monsterous Foes, two more Ogres appeared!
It was a surprisingly difficult fight but, as Our Heroes do, they emerged victorious.
In the entry hall was the skeleton of a Blue Dragon, the bones carved with runes and sigils, including the Sihedron Rune. Kand recognized this as a sort of copy-cat runesmithing; carvings that had the overt form of magical Thasillonian runes, but without the actual magic or power behind them.
A statue of an enormous giant stood across from the skeleton - 40 feet tall, wearing jewel-encrusted armor and a Giant-sized Sihedron Amulet around his neck. Removing the amulet made the frozen Giant corpse collapse, leaving only the amulet, and the breastplate.
Heading into the cave further The Party was whispered at by a coven of three hags, who wished to leave their Master Barl Breakbone's service. They figured that an attack by Our Heroes would be an ideal time to do so, and so fed the party information (he is a Stone Giant Necromancer!) and promised to take the ColdWight formed from the former leader of the Black Arrows and leave.
There was something there about how Lamatar had some sort of love affair with a nymph, and the hags wanted to see how the nymph was doing and provide her some closure, or something - just weird fae business, it sounded like, and we need not concern ourselves with any of that.
The corridors in the Kreeg cave were filled with the noise and smoke from a working forge - peering down one tunnel, Vig and Torvan saw over a score of ogres working the steel (with possibly several more in the mines). Yikes!
Down another corridor lay the Sin Pool room - a Sin Pool which had been recently destroyed. I fear that Auren Vrood, necromancer-at-large for the Whispering Way, had recently gained Mythic Power! Will he be a worthy foe for Our Heroes?
Only for certain small values of 'worthy', I'm afraid - the six Hill Giant zombies posed very little threat, being slow and shambling; Mr. Vrood damaged Our Heroes with a fireball but did very little other damage before dying. Upon his death he convulsed, and a magical acid consumed his heart and then his jaw.
At least it seemed to be a miserable sort of death, for what that's worth. Necromancers - eeeeww.
Barl the Stone Giant, however, was a Necromancer of a more sturdy sort - and was at least clever enough to go after the healer first. He strode towards Kendra and began pummeling her with his Giant Maul....
And not seconds after witnessing the death of the man who killed her father, Kendra Lorrimor died, her skull and chest broken by a Giant.
The Giant Barl did not live much longer than that. Saddened by their loss, the party almost did not have the will or strength to loot first the chamber, and then the entry-way giant's suit of armor.
But, as Our Heroes are wont to do, larceny found a way. All the while the banging and pounding and smoke continued to emerge from the forge.
Back in Fort Rannick, the next day, Sorshen the Runelord met with The Party....
But that is a tale for next time. We close the curtains here, gentle readers, until next time.
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